Deep and Wide Day 15 // Created to Connect

THE LOST ARE FOUND / THE FOUND ARE FREED / THE FREED ARE CONNECTED / THE CONNECTED ARE COMMISSIONED

15th May // Connected – Day 15 // Created to Connect

Reading – Genesis 2

My mind often wanders to what it would have been like to live in the Garden of Eden before the fall of mankind. Just imagine it with me for a moment…

When you wake in the morning there is no familiar ache in your back because the Garden is pain free. When you catch a glimpse of your reflection there are no black bags under your eyes, the tell tale sign of lost sleep. Anxiety doesn’t steal your sleep in the Garden because anxiety doesn’t exist in the Garden. You don’t leaf through the bills on the kitchen table wondering how you are ever going to make ends meet this month because there are no bills in the Garden and for that matter even if there had been you would always be able to pay them for the Garden knows no lack, just abundance. Your face is never wet with tears, your brow never furrowed in confusion, your heart never wracked with the pain of betrayal; only always joy and peace.

And to top it all off you walk with God, WITH GOD, every single day. Mind blowing isn’t it. It’s no wonder really that God repeatedly looked at it all and saw that it was good.

But then comes this mind-bending moment, when in the midst of paradise, before one single thing has been broken by sin and man is still walking in perfect harmony with his creator, God makes this statement. “It is not good…” (Gen 2:18). What on earth could not be good in this scenario? Surely this was perfection completed!! No, not from God’s perspective. Watch how He finishes His sentence… “It is not good that man should be alone.”

Have you ever thought about that, I mean really thought about that? Despite the fact that Adam has all of the provision he needs, despite the fact he has a perfect unbroken connection to God Almighty, God still thinks something is missing… human connection. The fact is this … people need people. No matter how independent you may feel, hardwired into your DNA is a deep, deep need for connection with humankind. God in this moment makes this audacious statement… I am not the only thing you need Adam; you need human companionship and connection too.

No matter how closely you walk with our beautiful Heavenly Father God you need to understand something… you need people too. Connection is not an optional extra; it is pivotal to your emotional, physical and spiritual health.

So as we begin this journey this week looking at the third part of our mission statement “CONNECTED” maybe we should all ask ourselves these questions –